1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to water glider assemblies of the type which include separate left and right foot water glider members that can support an individual user above the surface of a body of water and enable the user to move thereacross, and more particularly to such water glider assemblies wherein the separate water glider members are connected together by attachment devices so as to stabilize the assembly.
2. The Prior Art
Water glider members, which are also variously known as water walkers, water shoes, water skis, flotation members and pontoons, are well known elements for use in supporting an individual user above the surface of a body of water and for enabling the user to move from one point to another on the water's surface while standing up. Usually two separate water glider members are used together, one being a left foot water glider member for supporting the left foot and leg of a user and the other being a right foot water glider member for supporting the right foot and leg of the user, and advantageously these separate water glider members are connected together by suitable attachment devices so as to form a water glider assembly which is stable. Without the use of such interconnecting attachment devices it is difficult, and at times unsafe, for a user to stand on the individual glider members or use them to propel himself forward. In this regard, unconnected pairs of glider members will tend to separate laterally due to the fact that the center of gravity of the individual user will be located between the member pairs; they will tend to separate vertically as the weight of the individual user shifts from one glider member to the other during use; and they will individually tend to rotate from side to side, especially when used in rough water conditions. Prior art water glider assemblies have utilized many different types of attachment devices for connecting the water glider member pairs together, some achieving a greater degree of stability in the glider assemblies than others.
Some water glider assemblies simply utilize flexible connecting lines between the two water glider members. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,694,209, two water skis are connected at their leading and trailing ends by link chains. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,835,494, two water walking pontoons are connected in side by side relationship by a series of elastic chords. However, although these types of water glider assemblies display a certain degree of stability as compared to systems wherein the water glider members are not connected atall, the connecting lines must be relatively short in order to limit the lateral and vertical movements between the glider members, and this shortness in length will likewise limit the relative parallel displacement obtainable between the glider members and thus will reduce their effectiveness in moving an individual user across the water's surface. In addition, the sideways rotation of the separate glider members is not at all effectively controlled.
An improved water glider assembly of the foregoing type is shown in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,261,069 wherein two water walker members of a water walker assembly are not only connected by two looped cables but are interengaged by means of an enlarged protrusion which extends outwardly from the side of one of the water walker members to engage in an elongated indentation in the facing side of the other water walker member. However, although this water walker assembly is improved in stability insofar as the positioning of the protrusion in the side of one walker member in the indentation in the other reduces the possible vertical separations between the two glider members and helps to some degree in controlling their individual sideways rotation, the looped cables will by necessity limit the possible relative parallel displacement between the water walker members and thus will limit the ability of the user of the walker assembly to move it forward.
A number of prior art water glider assemblies utilize guide rods which extend in parallel between the individual glider members to provide stability to the assembly. In U.S. Pat. No. 2,153,939, inclined rods are respectively attached to the facing sides of two water skis and loop elements are interconnected between the rods to allow the two skis to be moved in parallel with one another while lateral and vertical separations are prevented. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,112,892, an elongated rod is located in parallel between two skis to fit through slotted projections extending outwardly from the facing sides of the two skis to likewise allow for parallel movement between the two skis while prohibiting lateral and vertal displacements therebetween. However, in neither of these water glider assemblies are the individual glider members fully prevented from individual sideways rotation, and in addition, due to their construction, these assemblies must be either stored and shipped in the form of a single unit (which is cumbersome) or else are assemblable for use only with the help of accessory tools.
Finally, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,877,409, a water glider assembly is shown wherein the individual water skis are connected together by guide rails and cooperating bearing elements which project from facing sides of the two skis, as well as by a separate rod member which is pivotally interconnected to vertically oriented bracket members on the top surface of each ski. However, although this water glider assembly is quite stable because of the fact that the individual skis are limited with respect to lateral and vertical displacements and also because they are prevented from individual sideways rotation, the assembly is quite complicated in structure and requires supplementary equipment in order to control the direction of movement of the glider assembly.
Thus, many of the known water glider assemblies are undesirable because the stabilizing attachment devices used to connect the individual glider members either will be insufficiently effective, undesirably limiting with regard to the parallel displacement between the glider members, undesirably complicated in structure, or difficult to store, transport and assemble. In addition, none of the prior art water glider assemblies are constructed to allow the user to partially disconnect the two individual glider members in order to change the direction of movement of the assembly while in use.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a water glider asembly which is stable, i.e., wherein lateral and vertical displacements between the individual water glider members are prevented and wherein sideways rotation of each water glider member is prevented, but which nevertheless allows the individual water glider members to freely move in parallel with respect to one another.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a water glider assembly wherein the individual water glider members thereof can be easily redirected in orientation to change the direction of movement of the water glider assembly as a whole.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a water glider assembly which is simple in construction, easy to store and transport, and readily assembled without the need for accessory tools.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a water glider assembly having a stabilizer cartridge which includes a releasable locking mechanism for the cartridge so as to help prevent stabilizer cartridge creep and to facilitate assembly and transportation of the water glider assembly.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a water glider assembly which can be propelled over the surface of water by forces exerted by both the arms and legs of the user.